When Washington manicurist Lidia Schaefer returned to her native village in Ethiopia, she was troubled by what she saw: children walking three hours each way to attend classes held not in a school, but under a tree.

After learning in 1998 that one of the girls she'd met — Medhine — had been attacked and killed by a hyena after falling behind other children during the long trek home from school, Schaefer knew she had to act.

She began setting aside a third of her salary and all of her tips, and later sold her house and car, to raise enough money to build a school for the village.

Read the story from CNN Heroes, or watch the video below…